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The Sultan
The Sultan is one of the main characters in Disney's Aladdin franchise. He is the ruler of Agrabah and kind but somewhat bumbling father of Princess Jasmine. He was voiced by the late Douglas Seale in the original film and Val Bettin in the TV series and sequels, and later Jeff Bennett. In the 2019 live action remake, he is played by Navid Negahban. Personality The Sultan can be described as being pompous but kind. He seems to be somewhat childish, as he is often seen playing with various toys, something he takes very personally. Though he dearly loves Jasmine, he's initially frustrated due to her constant rejection of potential suitors and pushes her to choose a husband. And yet, he explains his actions regarding the subject as arising from a need to make certain that Jasmine is cared and provided for, as he is starting to get up in years. The Sultan also prides himself on being an excellent judge of character. However, contrary to his own belief, he's rather gullible, as he does not realize that Jafar is untrustworthy until Aladdin points out Jafar's plots. Aside from his childish mind, he has shown to be a worthy ruler knowing when to put his power into good use and can be strict at rare times. He is never shown as having a wife, though he does mention having one, but she clearly passed away before the events of the original film ("her mother wasn't nearly so picky."). Appearances ''Aladdin'' The Sultan is said to be beloved by his subjects, but sometimes becomes frustrated with his daughter. He does not seem to understand why she would want a life outside the palace. As the law states that she must marry a prince before her next birthday, he becomes worried when Jasmine refuses all potential suitors. He is unwittingly controlled by his Grand Vizier, Jafar, with the aid of Jafar's snake-staff, and it is probable that this has been the case for some years. Upon meeting 'Prince Ali Ababwa' (the disguised Aladdin), the Sultan is instantly impressed by the pomp and grandeur of his entrance, so much so that he quite forgets that he has not invited nor indeed ever heard of any Prince Ali. He allows "Prince Ali" to remain at the palace while he tries to court Jasmine. The Sultan is likely unconcerned with the anonymity of Prince Ali, nor is worried about details such as his native country as he is glad to have a concerned suitor after Jasmine chased all the other princes away. He also confides to Jafar that he could stay a free man as "maybe you will not have to marry the princess after all". This unknowingly angered Jafar as he lusted after Jasmine and wanted her for his wife, and saw Prince Ali as a potential threat and rival. Later, Jafar attempts to kill Aladdin to prevent him from marrying Jasmine. Jafar then hypnotizes the Sultan into ordering that Jasmine marry Jafar. However, this plan is foiled when Aladdin reappears, and reveals Jafar's treachery. The Sultan orders Jafar's arrest, but Jafar manages to escape. After seeing Aladdin and Jasmine together, he realizes that the two have fallen in love, and Jasmine confirms that she has chosen "Prince Ali" as her suitor. The Sultan is utterly delighted that Jasmine has finally chosen a suitor and without hesitation blesses their union. Delighted, the Sultan then decides to have Aladdn and Jasmine wed immediately while also deciding to have Aladdin become the new Sultan once they are married. However, unknown to either the Sultan or Jasmine, Aladdin was upset by the news as he felt guilty for lying to the kingdom of his true identity and became afraid of becoming Sultan. The very next day, the Sultan announces Aladdin and Jasmine's engagement to the kingdom, but Jafar returns with the lamp and wishes to become Sultan. When the Sultan and Jasmine both refuse to bow to Jafar even as the sultan of Agrabah, Jafar makes his wish to become a sorcerer. He transforms the Sultan into a living marionette whom Iago takes out his anger about being force-fed dry crackers on. However, when Jafar is defeated, all returns to normal. When everything returns to normal, the Sultan overhears Aladdin telling Jasmine goodbye, as Jasmine can only marry a prince. Genie offers to rectify the situation by saying Aladdin has one more wish and that he should use it to be a prince again. Despite Genie's pleas that Aladdin will be losing a wonderful woman like Jasmine, Aladdin holds true to his earlier promise with Genie that only two wishes were for himself. Noting that Aladdin has proven his worth as far by defeating Jafar and freeing Genie, the Sultan decides to repeal the prince marriage law so that Jasmine can marry the man whom she deems worthy, Aladdin. ''The Return of Jafar'' In the second film, the Sultan announces that he wants to make Aladdin his new grand vizier. However, he grows suspicious of Aladdin after he defends Iago, who used to work for Jafar, and commands him to watch the bird. When Jafar returns, he takes advantage of Iago's new position as an "ally" to Aladdin, and makes him suggest the Sultan and Aladdin to have a discussion in a place where they are ambushed by Jafar and Abis Mal. The Sultan is imprisoned along with Aladdin's friends, and Jafar uses his turban to frame Aladdin for his murder. He is later freed by the Genie who's able to save Aladdin from being beheaded by Razoul, who had been tricked by Jafar and is later seen at the end of the film, again requesting Aladdin to become his vizier, but Aladdin turns down the Sultan's offer because he wishes to travel and see the world with Jasmine. ''Aladdin: The Series'' Throughout the TV series, the Sultan played a prominent supporting role, with a few episodes looking at his efforts to form alliances with other nations - including one occasion where he was nearly roped into a marriage to an Amazonian-esque queen, and others looking at his past; one episode saw Aladdin and the gang forced to deal with a plant-based sorcerer named Arbutus whom the Sultan had unintentionally offended by taking a rose from the creature's garden in his youth. Arbutus demanded that in 20 years he wanted the Sultan's most precious treasure in return - and this 'treasure' was Jasmine. On some occasions, Sultan would attempt to prove that he can be a heroic and daring adventurer much like Aladdin which he proved when Jasmine was kidnapped by Amazons who wanted to include her in their family. This aspect of his character was mostly explored in the episode "Armored and Dangerous". In the said episode, the giant Minotaur Dominus Tusk attacked Agragbah while Aladdin, Genie and Abu were away on a diplomatic mission. When the Royal guards couldn't stop Tusk, the Sultan reluctantly had to use the never-should-be-worn strength-giving Armor of his ancient ancestor Kileem to stop the giant Minitaur. The Sultan succeeded and killed Tusk, but the armor started corrupting him. It turned out that Kileem's spirit inhabited a statue of himself and had possessed the armor. After numerous failed attempts, Aladdin was able to trick the possessed Sultan into destroying the armor and Kileem's spirit. When the Sultan returned to normal, he was oblivious to what he did in the armor and only asked if he had stopped Tusk. ''Aladdin and the King of Thieves'' In the final chapter of the saga, the Sultan is eager for his daughter and Aladdin's wedding but the wedding is ambushed by the Forty Thieves. Later, the Sultan meets Aladdin's father, Cassim, not knowing he is the King of Thieves (since Aladdin and Genie decide to conceal the fact), and immediately accepts him. However, Razoul later reveals to the Sultan that Cassim is the King of Thieves and, with no other choice, the Sultan has Razoul incarcerate Cassim in the dungeon for life. After Aladdin helps Cassim escape the dungeon, and comes back to accept the consequences for his actions, the Sultan prepares to punish Aladdin in anger for freeing Cassim, but Genie and Jasmine come to his defense, stating that all he wanted was to give his father a second chance. The Sultan accepts his apology. At the end of the film, his wish of seeing Jasmine marrying someone comes true when she finally marries Aladdin and he and the others weep with happiness as the couple leave on their honeymoon. Trivia *The Sultan didn't make an appearance in the Kingdom Hearts series until Kingdom Hearts Union χ. He was mentioned by Jasmine in the original game, and she states that he has been disposed of by Jafar. In the later game Kingdom Hearts II, Aladdin mentions Sultan, saying he doesn't want to tell him or Jasmine about the possibility of Jafar's freedom. *In "As the Netherworld Turns" from the TV series, Bobolonius, the Sultan's deceased grandfather, calls the Sultan "Little Bobo". This could mean the Sultan was named after his grandfather, and "Little Bobo" is a nickname. 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